Sand lifter



Feb. 24, 1925.

C. P. FINDLEY SAND LINER Fi led Oct 5, 192

Patented Feb. 24, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES P. FINDLEY, OF HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONEHALF T LORRAINE M. FREEMAN, 0F RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA.

SAND LIFTER.

Application filed October 5, 1923. Serial No. 666,761. 4

T 0 (ZZZ whom it may concern.

Be 1t known that I, CHARLES P. FINDLEY,

a citizen of the United States, residing at i and useful Improvements inSand Lifters,

of which the following is a specification.

My present invention being referred to as a sand lifter, it should beunderstood that this invention is directed primarily to the handling ofliquids containing solids in suspension, such as the oils obtainable innumerous wells which tend to become Fsanded up after alonger or shorterperiod of use; and my invention comprises also a systom or method ofhandling sand-contaminated oils or other liquids containing heavy solidsin suspension.

Although there are now on the. market and in use a number of pumps thatwill handle oils containing a comparatively high percentage of sand,especially in the case of comparatively deep wells there is a tendencyfor the sand to settle back, during the ascent of the oil, with theresult that the pump and adjacent parts soon become choked in a mannerwhich prevents further operations; and it is accordingly an object ofthis invention to provide means associated with a pump or sucker rod,and preferably attached to the joints thereof although movablerelatively thereto, for keeping the sand and oil thoroughly admixed andcausing the sand to advance upward with the oil, my preferred means forthe purpose referred to comprising a pair of oppositely disposed pivotedmembers capable of occupying either substantially vertical positions,during the downward movement of a pump rod, or substantially horizontalpositions, during the rise thereof, these being preferably secured by apair of hinged pins to apair of small and substantially flat plates,which may correspond in diameter to the diameter of the squared headcommonly provided adjacent the end of a section of oil well pump orsucker rod, it being possible. to secure one of my lifters in itsposition of use by the mere longitudinal movement of a pivot pin, and apreferred construction being such as to permit each lifter so assembledto move up and down through a limited distance upon, and during thecorresponding vertical movement of, a sucker rod.

Other objects of my invention will appear from the following descriptionof a preferred embodimentthereof, and from the appended claims, taken inconnection with the accon'ipanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a vertical section showing how my sand lifting units may beassociated with the sucker rod of a deep well pump.

Fig. 2 is a similar view of a single lifting unit and associated parts,on anenlarged scale, showing the relative. positions occupied during alifting movement.

Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the relative positions of parts duringthe descending.

movement.

Fig. 4c is a plan view of a single lifting unit of the same generalcharacter. The drop-limiting means indicated in Fig. 3 are slightlydifferent from the type shown in. the remaining figures.

Referring to the details of that specific embodiment of my inventionchosen for pur poses of illustration, 1 being a sectional sucker rodadapted to reciprocate a plunger 2, of the type currently employed indeep oil wells, or of any preferred type, and 3 being a. tubing throughwhich the pumped oil may be delivered at the top of a well, a lateraloutlet opening being indicated at 4, at the top of the well, andadditional strings of tubing or casing being suggested at 5 and 6, mysand lifting units S are shown as applied to the squared portions 7adjacent the upper ends of the respective sections 8 of the sucker rod1; and although various alternative constructions might alternately beemployed, I prefer to form my respective sand lifters from suitablyshaped portions of sheet metal secured together by pivot or hinge pins,each unit preferably con'iprising a pair of oppositely disposedrelatively movable wing elements 9, 9', secured by substantiallyparallel pins 10, 10, to a pair of interposed plates 11, 11, thedescribed construction being in various respects preferable to athree-piece construc tion, one of its advantages being the fact that, bythe organization referred to, assembling is facilitated, it beingpossible to insert one of the pivot pins 10, 10 in ad- Vance, finallyinserting the other of these pins at the moment when the respectivesections of sucker rod are being lowered within a Well tubing, or thelike.

In order to permit the wing sections of my lifting unit to rise intosubstantiallythe positionsuggestecl in Fig. 3 .duringthedescent of asucker rod and thereafter assume, during the elevation of said rod,substantially the horizontal position shownin Fi 2 an 7 suitable meansma 7 betorovided; C 7 I but I consider it advantageous to provide-,-

for this purpose, the substantially horizontal extensions 12, 12", shownas int-egralwitli the interposed plates 11, 11, although slight- 1y;offset relatively thereto; and it isan advantage of theconstructionabove described that, although the motion, of my :lifting:plates relatively to a sucker rod isrestricted, each lifting unit isnevertheless free to play end down upon the squared section towhich itmay be secured, it being'understood that the organization referred to isdesignedrand adapted to maintain a: substantially uniform mixture of oiland sand, or the like, throughout an extensive'verti'cal column,the-agitation effected by my-respective sand'lifters,

which optionally are pivoted in planes alternatively at right angles toone another, being effective to prevent or retard-athesubsidence of sandor the like, during the elevation of a column of liquid withwhich it maybe associated; and my-described sand lifting meansmay beemployediii-conjunction with any preferred type of pump--01 -means forinitiating the upward movement of oil or sand, or a mixture thereof.

.willrbeunderstood that various features thereof might be independentlyemployed, and also that-various modifications might be-made'without adeparture from the spirit and scope of my invention as the same isindicated above and in the following claim.

What I claim is:

' In a sand lifter, the combination with a sucker rod coupling havingasquare neck of a-pair of plates fitting against opposite sidesof thesquare neck, wings fitting against the other opposite sides of thesquareneck and hingedly connected to the plates and adapted to swingupwardly and not downwardly.

Intestimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

CHARLES P. F INDLEY.

